GoT Season 9 - The rebirth of the Dragons
by BuffyTheDragonQueen
Summary: This is the 9th season from the actual 8th season of the show. After killing Daenerys, Jon starts a journey towards who he really is, a king, not a bastard, and to understand who Daenerys really was, walking in her shoes. Trying to find himself, and the parts of her he missed, he finds much more. And, not for himself, he is finally ready to take back what's his.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

* * *

**Beyond the Wall**

* * *

Months after killing Daenerys, Jon was still in pain. He had hoped Tyrion would be right, in time. He had hoped to freeze his hearth. He had thought that being free and living beyond the Wall, as before, was what he wanted. But he had not counted on the fact that he had fought wars in the meantime, he had loved and was loved, and he had found out his real identity. He was not the bastard that had gone to the Wall years before. He had a place in the world now, a place for which he was not ready before, he had tried to run away. Killing Daenerys Targaryen was also refusing himself and his new truth. But he had dreamt he was with her every single night. He would hold her every night, in his dreams.

One night he had started dreaming something else. Jon would dream in Drogon's skin, and a small white dragon was playing with him. After weeks of this, finally the small dragon had turned around and looked at Jon, showing him its grey eyes, Jon's eyes. Jon had woken up in tears.

He went hunting that morning, and was now lighting a fire to cook what he had captured. Ghost was eating his share next to him: unlike Drogon, Ghost liked his food raw. Jon could not stop thinking about his dream. Tormund sat next to him.

"What is it? You have been weird all day."

"I think this is all wrong. I am in the wrong place, but I do not know where I should be."

"You dreamt about her again."

"No. I dreamt her dragon with a small white dragon, that had my eyes.".

"It is not my place. But have you considered that maybe you feel so guilty also because you missed a part of the story?"

Jon looked at him confused.

"You missed her story, Jon. You killed her, and you know it was not fair. And you never really knew what journey she had made, to get to that point. Maybe you need to go to Essos, and do what she did to become who she was. Maybe you will see you were right, or maybe you will understand her. She was your woman. And you fucking killed her. Maybe knowing her will give you peace. Honor her memory."

Jon lowered his eyes, when they had started filling with tears.

"Look I am not saying what you did was not justified. I am saying, a part of her is still pulling you to her, and you can find a part of her where she lived. Maybe she has awoken the dragon that was sleeping under the ice. You are a Targaryen. You cannot run from that.".

"I did not know you were this deep."

"Oh fuck off." answered Tormund, while grabbing half of Jon's lunch.

"Maybe you are right."

"I know you should fuck off."

"I meant about going to Essos" said Jon, with a half smile.

"Yeah, you can fuck off to Essos if you want.".

"Now I recognise you." said Jon laughing.

* * *

**Nearly three years later, in Mereen**

* * *

After leaving Eastwatch, Jon had gone to Pentos, then to Vaes Dothrak, to Qarth, and had arrived in Yunkai weeks before then, with Ghost by his side. He had cut Ghost's fur short, to make him feel less warm. Jon had barely made it through, for the heat, the lack of food and water, having to persuade people not to kill him: he could not believe Daenerys had travelled in those lands when she was a little more than a child. How fierce and brave she was. In Yunkai, when he asked about Daenerys Targaryen, people eyes filled with tears of joy. The same thing happened in Astapor. The reply he had heard the most was Mhysa, Mother. Nobody seemed to realise she was gone. He was beginning to understand what she meant when she said she was loved in Essos. Everything that Missandei had said about her was true too. Everyday, he was realising more and more how wrong he had been, and what she meant when she said "Breaking the wheel": now he was in Mereen, outside what was once her palace, and he had not seen any beggar, children starving, or ill people. There was no filth on the street, and no stench. At a tavern the cook had explained to him that everybody was paid in Mereen, either in food, or clothing. People were paid to clean the streets, small houses were built for everybody, so nobody had to starve, or live on the street. If you were sick, you would be cured, if hungry fed, if cold you'd be given a house or a bed somewhere.

"Since when have you lived like this?"

"Since the Dragon Queen arrived."

Jon was speechless: he thought about Westeros, what it would have been with the two of them on the throne. He had heard that Bran was better than Cersei, but, not only things were not as in Mereen, also people were not happy, and odd things were happening in the city. The only consolation for killing the woman he loved had been that she was a tyrran, Tyrion had told him that. He now realised Tyrion had lied. He could see Mereen, he could see the people, the peace with which they were living. The journey that was supposed to give him peace, made him now truly inconsolable. He could have talked to her when she was in pain. He could have talked to her instead of killing her. He should have respected her story as well. He had been a coward. He saw now what ruling really meant. Yes he had been commander of the night's watch, yes he had been King in the North, but he had never actually stopped to think about what he wanted for his people and how to make it come true. Daenerys once told him one can help people, but only if one is in a position of power. "We will break the wheel, they will have no choice". Now he saw the world she wanted to build, the ruler she would have been. How terrible it must have felt for her that nobody would believe her, not even him. His view of life, his lack of faith in people, his close mind, had hurt her, the losses she had to endure for him broke her. And instead of understanding her, he had killed her. Jon wondered if that was only because of what Tyrion had said, or if it also was his fear of being king. She wanted to rule together, for him to embrace who he was, and he was not ready. He was still digesting not being a bastard, and she was asking him to be king, to love her. Jon did not know how to do all that. He had always been a bastard who had sworn to take no wife, to father no children, and to protect the realm of men. It was too much for him. And the fact that she slaughtered millions had been his way out, to hide again.

He had asked questions to a trader on the street, to understand his dream:

"Have you seen dragons recently?"

The trader seemed elusive "Not in years" he blabbed, and then left quickly.

Jon was now walking in an alley alongside Ghost, puzzled, when two guards caught him.

He ordered Ghost to stand down, as he did not want him to get hurt.

"Where are you taking me? I didn't do anything."

He received no answer.

He was taken behind the palace, in a back entrance, and dragged up the stairs. He had tried to reach for his sword, so the guards had taken his weapons away, and bagged his head. Until he was thrown on the floor, and he could see again.

He raised his head and saw an empty throne, and a man sitting next to it.

"We have been following you for a while. You are asking questions about Daenerys Targaryen and her dragons. Who are you?"

Jon hesitated and then answered "Jon Snow". He had still never used his Targaryen name.

The man raised from his chair, walked in front of Jon: he was really tall, and he was looking at him with hate. "He must know what I did" Jon thought "These were Daenerys' guards, they must know Grey Worm".

"I know who you are. I personally would cut you open, use your guts to hang you, and then burn you while you are still alive. Unfortunately, I must obey the orders I was given."

"What are the orders? Who are you? Who gave you orders?"

"I rule over Slaver's bay. My name is Daario Naaris, and I was ordered to let you go." Daario looked at the guards "Take him out of here."

The guards took Jon back on the same path, tossed him on the street, and threw his sword at him.

Ghost had waited there for him, and licked his face.

Still shaken, Jon looked at Ghost and said "Let's find somewhere to spend the night".

* * *

He had just managed to fall asleep in the stables of a tavern, when Ghost's barking woke him. He opened his eyes and he saw Daario Naaris.

"You will never know how much I hate this, but you have to come with me. I have to take you to somebody that can answer your questions. Now, tell your dog to shut up."

TO BE CONTINUED


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Daario had taken Jon to the harbour, where they had boarded a ship. They had been at sea for days and Daario had avoided him for the entire trip. Jon did not know where they were going and why, buy eventually surrendered and spent those days in silence with Ghost by his side.

They had finally docked at dawn, and they had been riding since. The sun had just moved towards the west; it was warm, but the wind, fragrant with flowers and trees, made the journey very pleasurable. Jon was sure he had never seen such vegetation in his life. He still did not know where they were, as Daario kept his silence, and he had stopped asking; Daario looked at him with hate and disgust, and Jon could not blame him.

Among the branches, Jon started seeing tall and long white walls from a far: blue roses climbed on them, making them look as if they were embroidered. They approached more and more and Jon realised those were the fortifications of a villa, to which the only entrance was a red door; the door was opened for Daario, and Jon saw an enormous courtyard with fountains of many shapes, low and rectangular, tall with statues, waterfalls, that delimited pathways; an intricate maze of hedgerows and lemon trees, and flowers, complemented the water games of the springs: it was all beautiful and peaceful there.

Suddenly, Jon realised that there was a huge black slope in the corner of the courtyard, and could not understand what that was.

The black slope started moving, and Jon's heart stopped. That was a dragon. The dragon turned his head towards Daario and Jon, when they passed the front door. Jon stopped breathing: that was Drogon; and he was curled up to protect something. The dragon moved, almost to show him the treasure he was hiding. Jon was hit by a pang in the hearth. Drogon still trusted him. Every night Jon wished Drogon had burned him when he killed Daenerys. He would have wanted to die with her. He came back from his thoughts, and saw what the dragon was protecting: a little girl, maybe three or four years old, with silver hair, who was playing with two small dragons. She would throw leaves and fruit in the air and then say "Dracarys": the little dragons would spit fire and the little girl would laugh.

"Daario." the little girl screamed, when they got close enough, and ran in Daario's arms.

The little girl looked at Jon puzzled. Jon saw she had dark grey eyes, like his.

"Who is he?" she asked Daario.

"That is not how your mother taught you to behave, is it?"

She nodded and introduced herself properly, like a future lady would have done: "I am Naerys Targaryen, daughter of Aegon and Daenerys Targaryen."

Then she looked at Daario again "Who is he? What is that?" she was now looking at the direwolf.

Jon could not breathe. The small white dragon with grey eyes from his dreams. This is what his dream was trying to tell him. His daughter. Ghost had started licking her feet and she was laughing and laughing. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, together with Daenerys. How could this be? Then Daenerys must be...

Before he could form any thought about what he was experiencing, he heard a voice he had dreamt every night for years, and felt like his heart had just exploded.

"Naerys, to whom are you talking?"

"Daario, Mother. "

Daenerys walked out the main house, she smiled at Daario, and was about to run towards him, but she saw Ghost at her daughter's feet. Her heart started pounding really fast, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath; when she opened them again she saw Jon. And Jon saw her. They were both paralised by a multitude of intertwined feelings impossible to separate from one another. And the world was the way it should have been again. Aegon and Daenerys Targaryen, and their princess that was promised.

"Who is he, Mother?" Naerys insisted "What is this?" she kept her feet close to Ghost's mouth, and Ghost would lick them every now and then.

"She introduced herself very politely" Daario warned Daenerys "she already said she is the daughter of Aegon and Daenerys Targaryen".

Daenerys swallowed, walked towards Daario, and picked Naerys up from his arms. "Naerys, this is Aegon Targaryen, your father. And this is his direwolf Ghost. I told you he might find us." said Daenerys nervously, never stopping to look in Jon's eyes. How many times she had wondered how it would have been seeing him again, how terrified she was of him, of his unforgiving morale, of the fear that he never wanted her, of the fact that, to get rid of her, he had killed her.

She had not changed. If anything she was more beautiful. The gloomy clothes she had worn in Winterfell and King's Landing were gone. The had a light dress, the colour of her eyes, her back was naked, she was wearing her hair up, but small strands of hair fell on the side of her beautiful face. He had never thought he would see her again, but in his dreams. Maybe this was a dream. A daughter and his Daenerys, right in front of him. This must have been a dream.

The little girl turned to Jon and gave him the biggest smile "Why did it take you so long?"

Jon tried to pull himself together "I am sorry. I was lost. I could not find my way without your mother."

"Did you lose yourself after you killed mother?"

Daenerys put her down, to not make her feel she was shaking.

Jon was in pain, in his stomach, in his heart "I got lost before then. That is why I killed her. I shouldn't have." Jon started crying for the shame, for the pain, for the joy: he could not keep track of what he was feeling anymore.

Naerys got to Jon and lifted her arms to be picked up by her father "Don't be sad, father. We are well now, mother and I. Drogon travelled the sky and brought us to Daario, and Daario asked a red lady to bring mother back. Nobody knew I was there too. Only mother knew. So she asked the red lady to bring me back too. And now we are here.".

He knelt and hugged her and kissed her hands "You are just a dream. A beautiful dream. I thought I was damned and now I see you and your mother and it is all a dream again."

Daario put his hand on Daenerys' back, as he saw she was about to pass out. She seemed to recover a little. "My love, can you see Neethi and tell her to draw a bath for your father, and to be prepared to serve dinner for all of us?"

"Yes, Mother." she started running towards the house. Then she came back: "May I be excused, father?"

Jon kissed her hands "Of course.".

Jon raised and looked at Daenerys. He realised he not only had killed the woman he loved, but also their child. She was trying really hard not to cry. And she was shaking. He made a step towards her, she moved backwards, and Daario moved in front of her. Daenerys did not smile, lowered her eyes, and said "Daario will show you to your chambers." And she walked in the house.

* * *

**Dining room**

* * *

Daenerys had known mostly deserts, of sand, of rocks, or of ice, in her life, so she had wanted every room in her villa to be painted with trees and flowers, so that she would always feel in a garden. The walls of the dining room showed her beloved lemon trees in a garden of lilacs. Now she could not stop promenading the room, not even the pretty painted plants could calm her. She was angry at herself, for having missed him, for the instinct she had of running in his arms, for hating him and loving him at the same time; she was angry at Jon, for what he had done; at life, that could not let them be happy; at his family, who ruined their love. She was angry and in pain and she wanted to scream.

"Why didn't you tell me?" asked frustrated Daenerys.

"Because if I had told you we were coming, you would have spent all these days not sleeping, and not eating, torturing yourself. I was trying to protect you for a few more days. Until I'll have the chance." answered Daario.

"What do you mean?"

"You love him. I can see it from the pain with which you look at him."

"I loved the man I met at Dragonstone. Then that man went away, and another came, a coward, who killed me. And this was a life ago. I died and was brought back since then, I had a child, I took my reign here in Essos back. I do not know the man you brought here."

"He is Naerys' father."

"Yes, and that is why I had ordered you to bring him here, in case he had appeared in Mereen asking questions. Naerys has the right to know her father. I just...I did not think it would be so hard..."

Daario put his arms around her "Calm down. Nothing is happening. You do not have to do anything. You can hide in your chambers and never talk to him." he kissed her "Or better: we can hide in your chambers and never talk to him." he tickled her back, she smiled at first, and then laughed, and he kissed her again.

She felt observed, turned around and there Jon was, staring at them.

"I am sorry I did not mean to..." he was embarrassed. And hurt. And jealous. What was he expecting, that she would have been waiting for him after he killed her? He felt like an idiot. He had never made her laugh like that, nor reassured her. He was always sad with her, worried for the army of the dead, worried for his sisters, and then he killed her. After the journey he had done, to see what it was like to be her, to be a ruler, to care for the people, now he was faced with what she would have needed from him, as a man, her companion.

"Let's sit" said Daario, sneeringly.

They slowly and awkwardly sat at the table when, thankfully, Naerys stormed the room "I am starving, let's eat." She climbed on Jon's lap and put her head on his heart.

* * *

**Naerys' bedroom**

* * *

Dinner had been very...polite. They discussed Mereen, and Slaver's bay, the Wildlings, the weather. After dinner, Naerys had insisted for Ghost to sleep into her bed with her and for her father to put her to bed and tell her a story, the story of the dragon and the wolf.

Jon had fallen asleep as well, and when Daenerys went to check on her daughter, she found her sleeping with her head on her father's chest, hugging Ghost.

Daenerys sat for a moment at the feet of the bed, looking at this scene, and she found herself smiling, only to be pierced with anger and sadness again. It was a chilly night, and she tried to cover her daughter before leaving, but Jon opened his eyes. He understood what she wanted to do, and helped roll the little girl over the pillow, and covered her with a blanket. Jon and Daenerys both left the room quietly.

"I am sorry, I did not mean to wake you..." she said.

"No, I am sorry I fell asleep and did not check on her..." he answered.

They both chuckled nervously.

"Can we talk?" he asked.

"I'd rather not for now." she said, and exited in the courtyard. It was a quiet night, with a chilly wind that made them shiver slightly, the sky was clear and full of stars, reflected by the water by the pathways.

He followed her "You do not have to talk. Could you just listen?"

She was visibly in pain, but he could not keep this in anymore; he had repeated this speech to her in his dreams every night: he had to say it to her, with the hope of making things better.

"Every night in my dreams I made a different choice. I trusted whom I thought was my family. I should have trusted you. Every night in my dreams I kissed you, after you said nobody loved you. As I should have done. Every night I married you, after you asked me to rule together. I never killed you. In my dreams, I have never killed you."

"In my dreams I never burned King's Landing to the ground." she was shaking again.

"Those deaths are on me. We exasperated you. You had helped us and we did not thank you. You had lost the people that had been your family. And I, the man who was supposed to be your new family, pushed you away. And then I killed you. And I am sorry.".

"I burned King's Landing to the ground.".

"And I did not stop you. You needed me and all I did was killing you. The mistake was mine, you needed help and I betrayed you. I was weak, I was indecisive, I was useless. I gave you nothing but pain. I took away everything for which you fought. I did not understand your vision. I did not know. And I took your life. But if you'll allow me, I want to spend the rest of my days making amends for that. Please..." he tried to take her hand but she moved backwards and lowered her eyes.

"What is happening? I woke up and you were not there." Daario came out from the house to look for Daenerys. He seemed really worried.

"I am sorry I worried you." she took Daario's hand "I went to Naerys bedroom to check on her, and..." Daenerys was agitated and uncomfortable.

"I am sorry I have upset you both." Jon apologised, he hesitated "I don't really know how...this is beautiful and unexpected and...".

"This is beautiful for you. And for Naerys. But for Daenerys is just really hard." Daario corrected him. He could not hold back anymore "You killed her" he was finally letting on how furious he was "How could you? I love her with all my heart, and even if she burned the entire world and was about to burn me, I would still love her. I could never kill her. How could you? You kissed her, and killed her. How could you? I have never wanted to kill anybody like I want to kill you.".

"I have been asking the same question to myself for four years now. And you must know: if you wanted to kill me, I would not try to stop you." Jon looked like an empty shell now, so much that even Daario did not know what to say anymore.

Daenerys looked at Daario with severity "Perhaps we should go to sleep now. It has been a long day. Very long. We can talk about it tomorrow." she sweetly pulled Daario away from Jon "Good night, Jon.". She hadn't wished him good night in years, and it felt familiar, it felt safe, and then the thorns of his betrayal stung her again. She turned around and entered the house, and Daario followed her.

TO BE CONTINUED


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

**Daenerys' chambers**

* * *

Daenerys kept staring at her bedroom ceiling, painted as a cloudy night sky. She was thinking of what Jon had told her the night before. He did not defend what he did, and he understood what he should have done instead. That was good. At least... that. It was not about him, or just about him though. The decision to unleash Drogon on the city was hers. And she was not incapable of controlling herself at that point. She had deliberately decided to burn the city. And having Jon with her again was forcing her to face what she had done. She had been busy all those years, figuring out how to be a mother, a queen, hiding from Bran's magic, keeping her daughter safe, trying to forget how much she loved sleeping in Jon's arms at night, how safe she had felt with him...and how wrong she had been. She had not questioned herself, to understand why she had burned a city. She was not mad when she did it, she was enraged. But not at the people she had burned though. So why did she burn them? She was not mad, she was in pain. Was it a revenge? She wanted to hurt Tyrion, to hurt Jon, to hurt Cersei, to show her power to stop others from trying to hurt her. That was it. She wanted to scare them all, so that they wouldn't have hurt her anymore. She wanted to stop the people of King's Landing from treating her like the Northmen had done. With no them, there would have been no need to try and conquer their love. And they could not have hurt her rejecting her. She had to fight her brother, she had to conquer her husband's respect, her armies, cities, her fleets, she saved the North, yet she had to persuade the Northmen to love her. She failed and she was tired. The people that loved her wholeheartedly had died. She had burn the city, so they couldn't have hurt her. Alas, that's who she was: somebody that was desperate to be loved, and terrified to be hurt. How could she find redemption for what she had done?

"Why that face?" asked Daario bringing her food in bed.

"You will spoil me. What am I supposed to do then when you are in Mereen?" she smiled languidly, while he was opening the curtains letting the sun kiss her feet.

"I do not want to go back to Mereen. I am scared for you." he stopped for a moment "And jealous." Now he was besides her, as he was most of the time when he was with her. The despair he had felt when Drogon brought him her body, it felt like drowning, he still could not shake it.

"So you are afraid I will sleep with him and then he will kill me again?" she mocked him.

"Do not joke about it."

"I am sorry." she caressed his face "Drogon could take you, so you'd be faster and could come back sooner."

"No, no magic. Bran could sense it, or could travel in birds to spy on us. The spells are cast on the cities, on this island, not on the territories in between; it would be impossible to cover them all."

"Do you think that Jon knows?" she asked dubious.

"No, I am sure of this: he has no idea."

* * *

**Dining room**

* * *

Jon had woken up when the sun was already high in the sky. He had not slept in a proper bed in years, and his back was really grateful to him that morning.

He wandered around in the villa, looking for Naerys, or Dany, or something to eat. He had decided to go back to the dining room and start from there.

Daario and Daenerys were working there, while drinking wine and nibbling fruit.

"What are you thinking?" asked Daario.

"I am not really sure on how to solve this." answered Daenerys "they are both right."

They heard something falling in the corridor.

"I am sorry, I did not mean to disrupt your discussion, again. I was trying to go away before you noticed me but I hit a plate, and ..." Jon was embarrassed, mostly for what had happened the night before.

"Come in. I suppose you did not eat." Daenerys pointed at plates full of fruit and bread and cheese.

"Thank you. I would not want to..." Jon was hesitating.

Daario cut it short "Sit."

Jon sat and started eating.

"As I was saying, I do not know what to do." continued Daenerys.

"Give them a sword each and they will sort it out." said Daario, but he regretted it straight away for the way that Daenerys looked at him. "We could ask the former bastard here how he would do it.". Daario regretted this phrase too: Daenerys burned him with her sight.

She proceeded to explain politely "Jon" it was painful to even say his name "A farmer needed money and went to war as a mercenary. He managed to survive, but when he came back, his farm was occupied. Now he wants his farm back. However, the person that occupied the farm kept the field fertile and added flocks to it too, and obviously wants to keep it. They are asking for the queen's justice in this. What do you think?"

"Didn't your husband have a similar case to this, not with farming, but with pastures? You suggested him how to solve the quarrel, don't you remember?" answered Jon.

Daenerys looked in her memories. "Yes, Yes you are right. Drogo wanted to make them fight, but I said they should share and work together." she was surprised "Who told you that?"

"They still tell stories about you in the Dothraki sea. You are missed." answered Jon, too ashamed to look at her in the eye.

"Did you cross the Dothraki sea?"

"Yes, I...the last three years or so have been spent trying to retrace your journey. Pentos, Vaes Dothrak, Qarth...if I had known you were alive, I would have rushed through it though." Jon kept eating his cheese.

"Why?" she asked.

"I wanted to know the woman I loved. I wanted to know the woman I killed."

Daenerys was speechless. Even Daario could not find anything to deride him.

Daenerys came out from the astonishment "So now you think you know me, you have my memories, you have my past. You think you know who I am now and for what I stand."

"No, I think I know better the woman that I killed. I know her path, how she got to be who she was."

She slammed her cup on the table "You could have asked me. You could have believed me."

"Do you think I don't know that?" Jon was nearly in tears.

"I did not win King's Landing the easy way, because I fought for you first. All the men I lost, and Jorah, and Missandei, my own life, were lost because of you. And now, after all that has happened, you are putting time to get to know me? After you killed me? All this dedication to my memory, all this trouble only now? Have you made any progress in knowing who YOU are, and for what YOU stand. Because that was our problem: not my beliefs, but the fact that you did not know what yours were. It was your confusion that killed me, not your ideas. You kept being pulled by your sisters, by Tyrion, almost as if it matters from which family you come, to establish what you want. Loving me for you was like betraying your sisters, your family. But you are your own person, Stark or Targaryen, bastard or king, father or husband or alone. I could see that, but you couldn't. I could see that because I had to understand who I was, aside from Drogo's Khaleesi, Viserys' sister, the mad king's daughter. You have travelled Essos for three years, you travelled my past, but have you travelled your heart? Have you finally understood what you want?" Daenerys was fuming with rage, and after years of missing him and feeling her heart lacerated thinking of him, she was finally letting her anger out.

The cry of a child called them back from the dark place where they had gone. They turned to the door, and they saw Naerys crying. She had walked in the room when Daenerys was yelling, but she had never seen her mother raising her voice, thus she had gotten scared.

Daenerys went to calm her down "Nothing happened. I got upset and I needed your father to understand I was upset. But I shouldn't have yelled. Would you forgive me?"

Daario picked her up "Why don't we go and play with your dragons? Have they learned some new tricks while I was gone?".

Naerys seemed to calm down, she went with Daario, and Dany and Jon could hear her in the corridor blabbing about what she had taught her dragons.

"Where do we go from here?" asked Jon.

"I don't know. I wish I did, but I don't."

"If it helps, you could never hate me more than how much I hate myself."

"You are wrong." she was about to say "I could never hate you." but she stopped. "I am terrified of you." she said.

"Do you want me to leave? You were at peace before I arrived here."

"The man I adored, the father of my child, had killed me. Was I at peace?"

"What do you want me to do?"

"What do YOU want to do, Jon?"

"I want to stay here. With you. With Naerys." he tried to lightened the mood "even with Daario: he is not too bad. Gorgeous eyes."

She burst into a smile "Then stay. I better check on Naerys too. Excuse me." Daenerys stood up and went looking for her daughter, leaving Jon happy he made her smile, and heavy-hearted for not having done it sooner.

TO BE CONTINUED


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

* * *

Outside the villa, Daario was mounting his horse, trying to find the strength to leave Daenerys alone with Jon. There were affairs of which he needed to take care in Mereen, the hearings of the people, and mostly making sure that Daenerys would be shielded from Bran's magic. They had gathered wargs to leaf through the sky, witches to cast protective spells, priestesses to look into the flames. But they knew all of this would have never been enough against somebody that could be anywhere and see everything.

"I am going then." said Daario, more to convince himself than to communicate it to Daenerys.

"You said it already." Daenerys smiled.

"I don't want to." he kept staring in her eyes, trying to find an excuse to make him stay.

"I know you don't. You don't need to go today. There is order in Mereen, you can stay a bit longer." she put her hand on his.

"No. We have our obligations for keeping you safe, and having you rule at the same time. We have our way, and it is settled. We mustn't change it."

Daenerys was feeling anxious as well. Having Daario there would keep her away from Jon, would distract her. Without Daario, nothing would have pulled her away from Jon but the fear he could hurt her again "Well, it only takes a day of travel from Mereen. You sailed for a week to confuse Jon. You can be back in a few days."

Daario lowered his eyes.

She saw Daario was more scared than she was, so tried to console him "Nothing will happen. He barely managed to kill me once."

"No, my love. He managed to fool you once. You want to believe he is good." his teeth were grinding.

"He killed the woman he loved because he was persuaded I was a murderer. He was weak. Just weak." she was careful. Nonetheless, he had killed her. What was she doing now? Defending him?

"Isn't that worse?" asked Daario, turning his horse to take his way to the harbour.

Daenerys did not answer. She smiled and kissed Daario. "Come back as soon as you can. I promise you will find me as you left me." But she was scared that was not true.

* * *

When Daario had led him there from the harbour through the forest, Jon had not realised the villa was by the sea. No harbour, no constructions, not another soul, till the eyes could see. The sand was golden and hot, but a light breeze and the trees spread close to the water kept him cool. Ghost was going in and out of the sea, to then wag the water out of his coat, getting Naerys wet and laughing.

He thought about what he had hoped to have in his life, for him, and he realised there was nothing. The only purposes that came to mind were become a ranger, and save the living. But the was no desire for himself really. Aside from Daenerys: he had wanted her, not for the throne, not for her army, but because since he saw her for the first time she filled his head and his heart completely. Those eyes, her voice, her strength. He was raised with the thought he did not deserve anything from life, because he was a bastard. Even that was wrong: just because one's father did not recognise him, why shouldn't one had to hope for a good life. He knew now, Missandei made him think of that telling him that in Essos there were no bastards. Westeros, the North, created rigid rules for living that ultimately made people unhappy, and in the name of what?

He looked at his daughter: she was so merry, such a happy child. Daenerys had raised her that way. She was a good mother. And they were…well he did not know where they were yet, but sure that was not Westeros: even if his daughter had not had a father to give her a name, she was lighthearted. He thought that if his daughter had been born in Westeros in a similar situation, she would have been treated like scum, like he was, even when he was that little. He now understood the meaning of "a better world", the words that Daenerys had kept repeating.

"If I had been raised like her, thinking that I deserve to be happy, what would I have wanted for me?" he asked himself. One answer was always "Daenerys". And then he thought "I would have wanted what's mine. The Seven Kingdoms should have been mine. That was my right. And I would have made a good king. I was chosen as lord commander of the Watch. I was chosen as king in the North. Daenerys loved me, me, there must have been something good in me, then. Because of Tyrion, my sisters, and Bran, I lost everything before even having had a chance of realising I wanted it. Before even realising I deserved it." he looked at his daughter and thought "and I would have wanted her, though I would have never imaged her to be so wonderful."

He heard muffled steps on the sand, and then in no time Daenerys was sitting next to him. She was quiet, but he could feel she was tense.

"You are a wonderful mother. I know I have no right of saying that. But in case…I wanted to say it." he told her.

"Thank you." she bit her lip. She could not stay away from him, she thought.

"May I ask…where are we exactly?" asked her Jon.

"You cannot know. I don't trust you, and Bran mustn't find us."

Jon frowned "What does that mean?"

"Bran knows I am alive. We are not sure if he knows about Naerys or not, but if he knew, the situation would be even worse." she kept biting her lips. She did not know if Jon was ready to know. "Why am I protecting him? He must know what monsters he supported." she thought while her rage was mounting again.

"I don't understand."

"Your brother wants me dead. He can spy on us. We had to cast spells on the cities, and on this place, to keep his sight out. We have wargs to watch the sky, and red priestesses to look in the flames. We don't allow the people in the cities to talk about me. He mustn't know anything."

She could see his pain, it was nearly tangible. Her heart was teared between her love for him and her anger. Love won this time "I know how much you love your brother, but I wanted to be honest. I have proof he is not the man you think he is."

"He had the sight, and he let you burn the city, and let me kill you. And he did not stop us. I kept thinking about it all these years. If he knew, he could have stopped us. He chose millions of deaths and to destroy his brother in order to rule the Seven Kingdoms. I know he is evil."

She did not expect this reply. He had sustained Sansa even when he knew Sansa hated her. He had changed, after all. In Westeros he would have found an explanation to defend Bran, and excuse, to lie to himself. Now, his eyes were wide open. "What do you mean with _'destroy his brother'_?"

"Do you think I could breathe after what I did? Without you? I have never loved anything in my life as much as I love you. Anything. I have dreamt you every night. You are the only thing I could think about during the day. You have been with me all these years, and the pain of having survived you has been ripping my heart since." he could not tell what she was feeling at that moment, she was looking at him like she did the first time they met, in Dragonstone. He continued clenching his jaw "The person who used to be MY COUSIN stole our throne, had me kill you, and not only that, he wants to kill you again."

"Our throne?" her heartbeat was so fast she could barely swallow.

"It should have been ours. It was what was supposed to happen, _since you were a child that could not count to twenty and I was a bastard in Winterfell, _as you said. You were right. It should have been us. It will have to be Naerys'. It is her right. We need to take it back."

"I am not doing anything Jon. I am not risking everything for a kingdom that never wanted me as a queen."

"If we don't kill him, he will hunt you for the rest of your life. And from what I gathered, he will live thousands of years as third eyed raven."

"I am not leaving my daughter. And I will not raise her to think that her purpose is ruling a kingdom that does not want her. And that, to achieve that, she might die."

"I don't want our daughter to hide all of her life. As long as Bran lives, she will be in danger. You will be in danger." he could not bear this thought.

"Jon, I am not going to be pushed around by you as I was before. Do you understand? We are safe here. I am ruling over a big part of Essos, Naerys is happy, and Daario and I have gathered a big army again, and have the situation under control. You don't get to decide. I am not leaving my daughter without a mother, I am not going into battle, or back in a world where the person you have loved the most in your entire existence stabs you in the heart. Am I clear?"

"I just want to protect you...and our daughter. I..." he was about to say "I love you" but he stopped.

"I have been doing a great job at protecting our daughter, thank you; Daario has done a wonderful job at that too. Your effort is really not necessary." she realised she had hurt him badly as soon as she said those words. She was about to take his hand, but luckily he apologised before she could betray herself.

"You are right. I am sorry." he had upset her, and took her hand to calm her. Just for a moment she did not move, let him touch her. Just for a moment, and then she took her hand away. They were both avoiding each others' eyes.

Jon started talking again to get out of that struggle "Why does he want to kill you again?"

"Because Naerys is the princess that was promised, to start a new era of prosperity for the realm of men. Bran's purpose is to destroy it instead. We are not sure he knows she exists, but he knows that the prince, or princess, that was promised would come from me. And you, of course. That is why he did not stop us when we destroyed each other." her voice broke at the end. She took a deep breath and continued "I am actually surprised he did not try to kill you."

"The fate he reserved me in the beginning was worse than death, it was a living hell." his voice broke as well "And, when I left for Essos to know you...to find you in your journey, I made well sure he thought I was dead. Tormund and I faked my death and then he burned me. That is what Bran saw. But that cave in which we did it had a hidden exit, and the advantage of being a Targaryen is that one does not burn on a pyre. As you well know." he smiled at her.

She smiled back, but then went pensive "Why did you pretend you were dead, if you didn't know he would have tried to kill you?"

"Because he did not stop me from killing you. I did not want to see or hear from him, or Sansa, ever again."

She looked him in the eyes just for a moment, and it was too much, for both of them. Fortunately, Naerys called them, and they could come back to a bigger world than just the one with the two of them.

TO BE CONTINUED


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

* * *

**Daenerys's chambers**

* * *

Daenerys was awoken by her own screams in the middle of the night. She had dreamt that Jon had killed her, again. It had happened every night since Jon had stabbed her, except when Daario was with her, beside her. Daario had brought her back to life, in all the ways he could: she was destroyed when the red priestesses had her open her eyes again. She had lost Jorah, Missandei, the kingdoms for which she had sacrificed everything, Jon, and was pregnant of the man who had killed her. She would not eat or sleep or get out of bed, but Daario sat by her every single day and talked to her, about what was happening in Mereen, about the Dothraki who had come to find her, about Grey Worm who now knew she was alive; he fed her, bathed her, brushed her hair, while her belly grew, and she slowly came back to be herself. What was she doing with Jon? No, the time that they could be together had passed, and now he had to be only Naerys' father. That is how it should be, it would have been unfair in any other way. She had been avoiding Jon for days, since they were together at the beach: she would go for long rides, would train the young dragons, hide in the kitchens and help the cook. And Jon knew. He had not looked for her. But she knew Naerys wanted her father telling her a story before going to sleep, and Jon often fell asleep by her; she could not resist: Daenerys would go in her daughter's room and look at them when he did not know she was looking. She had to stop. She prayed Daario could be back soon, to calm her, and keep her away from Jon.

Almost as if he knew, Daario barged in her room, alarmed by her screams. He saw she was alright, and sat next to her.

"Nightmare?" he asked kissing her forehead.

She hid in his arms "You weren't gone for long." she sighed, gratefully.

"No. But we will talk about that in the morning. Now, close your eyes and rest. I am here."

She fell asleep in no time, in his arms.

Outside Daenerys's bedroom window, there was Jon; he had gone for a walk and had heard Daenerys screaming; he had run to check on her, but Daario got there before him. He spied on them from outside the room, concealed by the flowy curtains: he realised Daenerys was only hurt by him, instead Daario calmed her, was good for her. With that awareness, he went back to his room and lay wide awake in bed, thinking on how to get rid of Bran.

* * *

**Dining Room**

* * *

"What is happening?" asked Daenerys entering the dining room. Daario had summoned her, but she was not expecting to find Jon sat at the table as well.

"Our defences will not hold much longer."

Daenerys sat, with her eyes always on Daario.

"Bran managed to travel in somebody in Mereen. "

Her face contracted.

And Daario continued "His powers are growing. We are gathering all the witches we can find, but, at some point, there will be no more to add to ours."

She did not say anything, and lowered her eyes.

Daario pressed "I don't know why now. Maybe the fact that Jon is here has perturbated the stability of the situation somehow, maybe he is just more powerful. The point is... we cannot hold much longer. We have to decide what to do."

Daenerys was quiet, but Daario knew her better than anyone, now that Jorah was gone. He knew she was re-living her journey in Westeros, he knew how angry she was, and scared, not for her – she was the bravest person he knew – but for her daughter. Daario knew that, if anything happened to Naerys, Daenerys would have died. "We have an army. It is surely bigger than his, the lords of Westeros have not really had time to regroup a sufficient number of men to fight a war. A war against you, that is." He suggested.

She looked at him with fire in her eyes "He would know. Unless we truly gather all the priestesses, all the witches, and all the wargs in Essos, and sail with them, to shield us from his sight. And even then, he would know. And what about my daughter? Should I drag her with me in a war that could kill her? Or leave her an orphan? Should I leave her here not knowing if I will ever come back?"

Daario took her hand "You needn't to go anywhere. I will lead your army. When we met, I sworn you would have had everything that I am, that I have. I am willing to keep that promise."

She smiled at Daario and caressed his face "No. That is not a solution. Let me think. I need a day to think."

He kissed her hand "Of course.".

She raised and left the room.

Jon had been silent the entire time.

Daario turned to him "I don't know what to do to not hurt her, and protect her at the same time."

Jon looked at him in the eyes "She needs you. You are good to her, to our daughter."

Daario was baffled, did not quite know why Jon was saying that.

Jon kept talking "We do not need an army to kill Bran. He is one man. This is the mistake we did the last time. We only needed to kill Cersei, instead we used armies and dragons, and things fell apart. We only need to kill one man, and I can do that."

Daario was about to protest.

Jon stopped him "No. You know it's the right thing to do. You know I am right. Bran thinks I am dead. He is not looking for me."

Daario started shaking his head "No. No. If anything happened to you, she'll…"

Jon stopped him again "She will be sad, but you will be there. You reassure her, you calm her, you make her smile. I was never able to do all that. I could only hurt her. And I am hurting her even now, being here. You know that is true."

Daario started listening.

"I will sail to Westeros today. Daenerys and I don't talk for days at times, she won't notice I am gone straight away. Bran will not see me coming. Your priestesses will see if I will be successful or not. Meantime, you will prepare a plan in case I failed. If I succeed, I will have saved my daughter, and the woman I adore. If I fall, at least Daenerys will know I loved her. I always have, but I was weak. I don't want to be weak anymore. Everything, from now on will be for her and for Naerys. If I fall, tell her that."

Daario had hated Jon for years, and for a moment, just a moment, the hate left some space for admiration.

Jon raised "I will go get ready, and kiss my little girl. You will cover for me, agreed?"

Daario nodded.

Jon reached the door, when Daario told him "Try to come back."

Jon nodded back.

TO BE CONTINUED


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Jon was on a ship back to Mereen, with Ghost, and his thoughts. He had asked to be blindfolded on the way back, for he did not want to know where the villa was, fearing that Bran could have somewhat extorted it from him.

Leaving had been the hardest thing he had ever had to do, after stabbing Daenerys.

He had written her a letter, for when she would have found he was gone. And left her one for Naerys, for her to read if he had fell. Both letters were with Daario now, waiting for the proper moment to be delivered. As for Naerys, he had told her goodbye in person as well.

"I have something to ask you. Would you do it for me?" he had asked, kneeling on the floor, in front of his little girl.

"Yes, father.". Naerys was so sweet, she looked so much like her mother, as if he needed one more reason to love her.

"I need to do something very very important. It is to keep you and your mother safe, but your mother does not know yet. Instead, I want to make her a surprise. Would you keep the secret for me?"

The little girl went sad "Are you going to leave us?"

He was surprised by her intelligence, and tried to reassure her "I don't want to, but I have to go. For a little while. Somebody wants to find you. I have to stop him first. So that you can be safe. And your mother as well."

"I will go with you.". Even in this, she was like her mother. This scared him. But, for now, he could only have made the world safer for her. He ought to do so.

"You are always with me. And I will always be with you. But I need to do this alone. Will you keep this secret with your mother for a few days? That I am gone, I mean."

She was crying, but she nodded anyway.

"I have never thought I could be so blessed. Yet here you are. And I love you so very much." He dried her tears with his hand. "Whenever you are sad, always remember that your father loved you so much, with all his heart. I will be back in no time. I do not want to miss a moment with you."

She hugged him tightly, and so did he, and then it broke his heart, but he had to leave her.

All he had to do now was kill Bran, and then they would have been safe. One man. It was only one man.

* * *

Daenerys' chambers

* * *

Daenerys could not sleep, and she kept thinking about what Jon had told her, that they needed to kill Bran. She knew he was right, but she was afraid. Of being killed, of being betrayed. Of having to leave her child without a mother, as she had been. Of trusting him, again. Yet when Jon said things, everything sounded easy. She wondered if he was her weakness or her strength, or both.

Daenerys could not resist, and after Daario had fallen asleep, went to her daughter's bedroom, to look at her and Jon together. Like she had done every night. However, that night, Jon was not there. Nor Ghost. That was what Jon did not consider: she saw him every day, he just did not know. A thought came to her mind, but it could not be. "Please do not let it be true…please…" she ran in the garden, then in Jon's chambers, nothing, no sign of him. Then, she woke Daario. "Where is he? Where is he?" she couldn't control her tears. Daario tried to calm her, but she was sighing desperately. The last time he had seen her in that state was when she had come back to life, after Jon had killed her. It was painful for him to watch her being so desperate, and for another man. Anyway, Daario tried to give her Jon's letter, as he had been asked.

She initially could not even read, the tears were blinding her; Daario tried to read it for her, but Daenerys was not letting the letter go. She gathered herself, and started reading.

"My love, I am sorry I have done yet again something without telling you. At least, this time my consolation is that I am acting to keep you and our daughter safe, and not to betray you. This is the safest choice. This way, if I fell, Bran might stop looking for you. If he does not know about Naerys, and if I am gone, he might leave you alone, for he would think our heir could not be born anymore. If I succeed you will be safe forever, and have back what I took from you when I killed you: the Seven Kingdoms. I was a ghost when I met you, I started living then. I was not ready, I was scared, I was a coward, and did something unforgivable. When I killed you, I died with you. I came to Essos because I missed you, and I thought that, looking for memories of you in your people, I would have felt you closer, because I could not survive in this world with you gone. And I found life, with you again, and the wonderful child you gave me. You gave me life again, in spite of what I did to you. You gave me life twice, when I instead took it from you. I am grateful to the gods for having being able to see you, to see that you are cherished, loved, and so is Naerys. I love you. I wish I had words to make you understand how much. I have always loved you, since you came down from your throne at Dragonstone and demanded I bent the knee to you, and I always will. You were right, we were meant to be together, and to rule together, since you were a child who could not count to twenty and I was a bastard in Winterfell. You were right. I wish I had done different choices, I wish I hadn't been weak. But I can make amend now. This is my atonement. I want to give you back the life that I took from you. You are the queen Westeros deserves, you are the queen that this world needs. I know now. I saw it. I am sorry, for everything."

She felt fire running though her veins, a strength she had not felt in years. She slowly folded the letter, and with the calm she had grown to have looked at Daario in the eye. "Gather witches, priestesses, wargs, dragons, and army. We are going to war."

* * *

King's landing

* * *

"Do you think he might have found her already?" asked Tyrion, while he continued sipping his wine. He was drunk. He was always drunk. He had an occasion of redemption being the hand of Daenerys Targaryen, but he betrayed her, and himself.

"If he hasn't yet, he will. That is why I let him live." grinned Bran "They are each other's weaknesses. He will always be her weakness. The only one that could have gone close to her enough to let her come out to the light again. "

Tyrion was terrified of Bran. He had realised straight away his mistake, but there was no way out. Bran saw everything. Knew everything. There was no hiding, no running, no hope. He had let Jon fake his own death, made him believe he was free, just to get to Daenerys. She was the only one capable to defeat him, the only one Bran feared. He drank his chalice of wine at once.

Bran looked outside the window "Soon, they will come to us, and it will finally be over. There will be nothing to stop me once they are dead."

TO BE CONTINUED


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

* * *

**Dragonstone**

* * *

Jon and Ghost were resting in a cave in Dragonstone. The same cave where Daenerys had told him for the first time she would have fought for the North, if he had bent the knee. It felt like that had happened a million years had passed.

He had sailed alone from Pentos, on a small boat he hoped would not sink. Jon had spent so long in Dragonstone with Daenerys, he knew all the coves where he could have docked unseen by Gendry's army. Lord Gendry Baratheon, thanks to Daenerys Targaryen. Yet another ungrateful one, like all the others, like him.

Jon was roasting a fish he had managed to capture, exhausted, and his thoughts were filling the cave around him. It was now two months he had left Daenerys' villa. More questions were in his head now, than when he had left Westeros. A different type of nostalgia, a richer love guiding him.

"I wonder if the best choice would have been to let the North be devoured by death, and my family with it. I wonder what would we be now, if Dany and I had hidden in Mereen, waiting for the end of winter. What do you think, Ghost?"

Ghost put his head in Jon's lap, to be pet.

Jon realised how much he had changed, and that that choice was not a possibility he would have considered four years before. He was still convinced his family were Arya and Sansa and Bran, back then. Back then, he was still convinced he was just a ghost. He wondered if he would have gotten to this point, if he had not killed the woman he loved. He asked himself if a desperate situation could have been turned around. His journey through Essos had brought him to be the king he should have been years before, and he had never felt less forgiving towards his siblings, or, better, his cousins.

"I know a murderer when I see one" Arya had told him, about Daenerys. "Don't forget who your family is". Rage started growing in him when he thought about Sansa, and what she had orchestrated with Tyrion. And, when he remembered how Tyrion had manipulated him, he broke the stick with which he was holding the fish on the flame.

"No matter now. How do I kill a man that sees everything? How can I save the people I love the most in this world?" he wondered. For a moment, he did not even care about saving the realm anymore. Daenerys and their daughter were what mattered. As for the realm, he felt the sting of the betrayal by the people in Westeros, for they could not go beyond their prejudice. And then he remembered, that neither could he. Otherwise, he would have trusted her. Ungrateful, and blind, and biased he had been.

Suddenly, a dull sound brought him back to the cave. He reached for his sword, but a man ambushed him, and was faster in disarming him effortlessly.

Ghost for some reason did not attack, he just barked. Jon was surprised and alarmed. There was just one exit, and the man was standing in front of it. There was no way out, and Ghost was not helping.

The man removed his cloak and reassured Jon. "I want to help you. I have been following you from Bravos to Pentos and then here." he said. Seeing that Jon was flummoxed and still agitated, he added "my name is Eddard. Think. If I had wanted to kill you, I would have already."

Jon continued not understanding why Ghost was not defending him. Maybe there was nothing to fear. Maybe Ghost sensed this Eddard was not trying to fool them. After all, Ghost had always hated Tyrion instead, and Jon had understood the reason why only after eight years Tyrion had travelled with them to the Wall. He had finally understood who Tyrion was when Tyrion had taken everything from him, his love, his life, his freedom. And Ghost had always known. "He must know now too." Jon said to himself.

"I want to help you. I know you want to kill the king." continued Eddard.

"How do I know this is not a plot of his, to play with us as a prey?" asked Jon.

"You don't. You can't know. That is why Arya asked me to give you this if I'd find you." He then pulled out of his bag a package, wrapped in a dirty sheet.

Jon unwrapped it, and found Needle. Jon's teeth were clenching, for he was still furious at Arya. That sword reminded him of a different time, when she was the little one he adored. "I know a murderer when I see one" she had said "Don't forget who your family is". Those phrases were thundering in his head.

Eddard could see hate in his eyes, and added "She is not here because she knows how wrong she was, how badly she behaved with you. How much pain she must have caused you. What a disappointment she must have been. She is ashamed, but wanted to help you. So she sent me. We travelled together and..."

Jon's nostrils flared.

Eddard continued "She was jealous of Daenerys. She had lost her brothers, and her parents, and she was afraid she would have lost you too. And she was wrong. She used to think she was a woman then, but she was just a child. And she is condemning herself for it. She has sent me to help you. You need all the help you can get."

"She sent somebody called like our father?" said Jon sarcastically. "Hers. Her father." He corrected himself, burdened with the pain with which he grew up, being treated like a bastard.

Eddard went pensive, grieved. "Arya told me all that you suffered, and what your sisters and Tyrion made you do."

"My cousins. What my cousins made me do." Jon, corrected him. He could not be sure, but in the darkness of the cave, enlightened only by the dancing flames of the fire, it looked like a tear was rolling down on Eddard's cheek. "Sit, have something to eat." he then said embarrassed.

Eddard sat and took a piece of fish, and Ghost sat next to him.

"Don't let what they did to you change your heart too much. Grow, learn, but don't let them change you. Once you abandon compassion, there is no turning back easily. Believe me." Eddard used his hand to wipe his cheeks, and bit his fish.

TO BE CONTINUED


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

* * *

At the Pyke

* * *

Daenerys looked at the horizon from the Pyke. Beyond that, Westeros. And somewhere there, too far from her, Jon. This time, she would have followed her plan. No man buzzing in her head, for reasons that had nothing to do with her happiness. No wrong advice, no taming her.

She knew that Yara had tried to fight Jon's sisters, after she was killed. That's why she had flown to her, with Daario, and Naerys, along with a priestess, a warg, and a witch.

This was Daenerys's plan. No army would have marched on Westeros, or accompanied her. The army would scatter, and the soldiers would be disguised as travellers, merchants, sailors; all in different boats, at different times, and with each group a witch, a priestess, and a warg. The ships were adjusted to look like trading ships, and were sailing from Bravos or Pentos, directed to East and West of Westeros. A swarm, from everywhere, would have surrounded and entered King's Landing, without the city realising it. Without death, without war.

If she had left the dragons behind and Bran got to them, he could have used them against her.

If she had brought them, the people would have remembered what she had done to King's

Landing. She realised no one would have forgotten what she had done anyway, so she brought all of her children.

As for the Pyke, Daenerys had first sent a group of her men, including wargs, priestesses, and witches, to Yara, as wayfarers, or merchants, so that Yara would have known what was about to happen. The Pyke was now protected, nonetheless they would let the magic shield down at times, so that Bran would not get too suspicious.

This time, this was her plan. All hers, no man's advice, no hand of the Queen playing her, no Jorah with his good heart convincing her to keep Tyrion as her hand, no Jon trying to keep his sisters happy.

She took a deep breath and reassured herself "Those men that did not trust me, eventually taught me not to trust myself. I believed them. Burning the city, I went were they pushed me. Burning the city, I betrayed myself, not them. Now, there is my brain behind it all, and my heart, for better and for worse. I am a dragon, now it is time to prove it to Westeros as well."

This carefulness was taking too long though. She wondered where Jon was, praying he was safe. They had parted for two months now, and she could not think of him without shaking.

"Your Grace..." Yara went close to her, looking out of the window.

"Do you hate me for what I did to King's landing? Have I lost your trust?" Daenerys asked her.

Yara smiled "Do you think that a man in your place would be asking that question?"

"What do you mean?"

"Men fought war for centuries, and in a war one kills the enemy."

"The citizens of King's Landing were not the enemy. They had surrendered. But they wouldn't have loved me if I let them live, and I burned them."

"It was not the best decision you could make. It was horrible. And you would not make it again. But you haven't answered my question. Do you think that a man in your place would be asking that question?"

"No, I don't think a man would."

"Then why are you?"

"Because I want to be better than that."

"Being better, having a vision of a fair world, does not mean you are perfect. You were fighting a war. And you are asking yourself that question not because you want to be better, but because you are a woman. Men and women are judged differently. And it is not fair."

Daenerys frowned.

"Think about it. If a man had acted like you did, nobody would have dared saying anything. After all you did to survive, after all you conquered in Essos, the compassion you had, after saving Westeros from the dead, your generosity, the courage, two men decided if you were fit to rule or not. You are exceptional, I have never met anybody like you, yet somehow two men decided you were not good enough. Two men who never fought a battle. Who, while you were crossing deserts, were comfortable in King's Landing. Tyrion claims he has fought once, but he does not know what a real battle is. Two men who, while you were fighting the dead, with your dragons, losing whom you loved, were in hiding in the crypts. These two men whispered to a third man who killed you, without a trial. Without an explanation. But he was not killed for it. Tyrion got to be in the council, after having betrayed his queen. A queen who trusted him. A queen you gave him shelter, when his family wanted him dead. They killed you, and they elected as king a boy who has achieved nothing in his life. They did not kill you because you burned King's Landing. They killed you because you are a woman. And elected Bran just because he is a man. Fucking Bronn is in the council. A man with no morale. Sam Turly is a maester, and I have never met a more useless man. All men, who conquered nothing, but your trust, then betrayed you, and took what was yours. Do you think they have ever wondered if you hate them or not? If what they did was fair?"

Daenerys knew Yara was right. She had to face this disparity in treatment as well, as a woman and ruler of the Iron Islands. Daenerys knew that the men around her set her up to fail, and she had let them. Even before she had burned King's Landing they were already judging her, plotting against her. Why did she listen to their advice? Why did she need a hand of the Queen? Why didn't she name Missandei as her hand? Why Tyrion? Practically a stranger at the time. Yara was right. Even her, Daenerys, was judging herself differently from how she would have judged a man in the same position as she was.

Yara saw Daenerys relaxing her forehead, and her eyes.

"Perhaps, in this new world of yours, there could be also equality between women and men. All people judged with the same rules, expected to behave in the same way. Women and men treated as equals. Think about it."

Daenerys took her hand and smiled at her. "I look forward to creating that world. Would you help me? You haven't answered my question. Have I lost your trust?"

"Never. I would follow you until the end of the world and back. I can see your heart, your Grace, and that is what I want ruling the world."

TO BE CONTINUED


End file.
